My Return to The Blog and the BEST of IRON MAIDEN

Sorry, I am fully aware it has been a while.

And in my resurgence to blog on and on hard rock and heavy metal, I will attempt to do the impossible.

I am going to give the list of the top ten best Iron Maiden songs ever recorded.

I know, crazy, as such a thing cannot be done, but alas, I will try.

I also hope to span their career and not dwell on only the Dickenson stuff. I will also try to put the new and the old along side of one another. Most importantly, I will try to be fair. Granted, my list may rely too often on the “hits,” I think it is only fair to note that their “hits” are so incredibly good.

#10 is Phantom of the Opera. It is the only Paul DiAnno song on this list, which may offend some, but I think Dickerson range is so much better. This is the best of the earliest demonstration of the dual lead guitar work, of their songs. Murray and Stratton rule on this song. Steve Harris is unappreciated as a bassist and a songwriter. Hopefully this list will end that nonsense.



#9 is The Evil That Men Do, from the Seventh Son of The Seventh Son album. The guitars are incredible and intertwine perfectly with Bruce Dickenson’s vocals. Dave Murray and Adrian Smith are the guitar masters on this track and the rhythm section of Steve Harris and Nicko McBrain drive the song home.



#8 is Wasted Years. To me, this one is more ballad like than straight ahead rock. Most might argue this on the list, but realistically, this is the song that spoke to me personally when I first heard it; think of past wrongs and rights and the like.



#7 is From Here to Eternity from the Fear of The Dark album. It is so catchy and so riff-driven, I had to include it. I love the lyrics as well and I think it is Dickenson’s best vocal performance before he left the band the first time.



#6 is Can I Play with Madness. That chorus is reminiscent of Bring Your Daughter to The Slaughter (not on the list), as it is so catchy. Listen to it once, you are hooked.



#5 is Aces High from Powerslave. The song soars and dips and sounds like an aerial assault on the senses. It is exciting, the timing is precise and it is a rolling and rocking number if Maiden ever made one.



#4 is Virus from the Best of The Beast. It features Blaze Bayley on vocals, which may hurt some folks, but is a great song. It just sounds so “English” in its approach of metal.



#3 is The Number of the Beast from the Album of the same name. Is there a better guitar intro in the history of Hard Rock/Heavy Metal? Nah, I don’t think so, either. It just has the incredible momentum building to Dickenson’s scream and chorus. Not only one of the best Hard Rock/Heavy Metal songs ever recorded, arguably one of the best rock songs ever recorded.



#2 is also from the Number of The Beast, as it is Hallowed Be Thy Name. I love the “gallows poles” lines with the ominous bells and then the sophistication of the song and the tight playing of the band, as the thunder of Iron Maiden come crashing through. It is also a standout moment in Hard Rock/Heavy Metal.



And lastly, my
#1 is Fear Of The Dark from the album of the same name. I like the studio version so much better than the constantly anthologized live versions of this song. The first time I heard it, I gained respect for the band. I even use the lyrics in my Psychology class and play the song as a mood capturing moment of Fear and Phobias. It is the song that made me take Maiden more seriously as artists and made appreciate the quality of their musicianship and their appeal. It was the song that brought me back to Maiden two and a half years ago.



My favorite CD of theirs is either Powerslave, Piece of Mind, or The Number of the Beast.

Granted tough choices were made to make it on this list as Tailgunner, Clairvoyant, Running Free, Wrathchild, Run To The Hills, and Different World, The Trooper, Wicker Man, Rainmaker, and Flight of Icarius are not herein. Maybe on the next ten; choose what you wish to enjoy.

Oh and some of th studio videos were not allowed to be embedded, so I chose others: no copyright violations, as you are aware.